Thoughtful Moments

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 7, Issue 84, 23 June 1944, Page 2

Thoughtful Moments

(Supplied by the Whakatfne Ministers' Association) •

BLESSINGS THAT REMAIN

There are loved ones who are missing From the fireside and the feast; There are faces that have vanished* There are voices that have ceased; But we know they passed for ever From our mortal grief and pain, And we thank Thee, O our Father, For the blessings that remain. Thanksgiving, oh, thanksgiving, That their love once blessed us here, That so long they walked beside us, Sharing every smile and tear; For the joy the past has brought us, But. can never take away, For the sweet and gracious memdries Growing dearer every day, For the faith that keeps us patient, Looking at the things unseen, Knowing spring shall follow winter* . And the earth again be green, For the hope of that glad meeting Far from mortal grief and. pain— We thank Thee, oh, our Father, For the blessings that remain. For the love that still is left us, For the friends who hold us dear, For the lives that yet may need us, For their guidance and their cheer, For the. work that waits our doing. For the help we can bestow. For the care that watches o'er us Wheresoe'er our steps may go, For the simple joys of living, For the sunshine and the breeze, For the beauty of the flowers And the laden orchard trees, For the night, and for the starlight, For the rainbow and the rainThanksgiving,. O cur Father, For the blessings that remain. —A. J. Flint, In one of 01.O 1 . Douglas' best booksi, "Penny Plain" she says in referring to sudden death:— "What a beautiful way to die . ; without weariness of waiting, with no pain of parting, suddenly to see his Pilot face to face." And thinking of those who are left, this writer continues: "ft shatters this old earth, but it makes a new heaven." Charles Kingsley expresses the same thought in "Westward Ho." "What better can the Lord do for a man than take him home when he has finished his work?" "But, Master Yeo, a sudden death?" "And why not a sudden death, Sir John? Even fools long for a short life and a merry one, and shall not the Lord's people pray for a short death and a merry one? Let it come as it will to old Yeo!" Charles Kingsley dwelt much on the thought of our dear ones who have passed on. A few more extracts are taken from his. writings:— "Surety, they may come and go, even now, though unseen. Like Christ, they may breathe upon our restless hearts and say 'Peace be unto you.' And not. in vain. For what they did for us when they were on earth they can more fully do now that, they are in heaven." "A little while and we see them, and again a little while and we do

OUR SUNDAY MESSAGE

not see them. But wliy? Becausa they are gone, to the Father, that they might gain life from His life, power from His power . . . love from His love, and surely not or nought . . . If they are to be like Christ when they see Him as He is, then surely, will they not use their powers for themselves, but as Christ uses His, for those they love." RECOGNITION IN ETERNITY How yearningly our hearts seek the assurance That loved ones, lost awhile, yet held so dear, Will, when we, too, shall pass to that hereafter, Remember in the There, as in the Here. Will those fine threads of love again be blended? Earth's broken ties, will thej 7 be knit once more? Those sweet communings intimately sacred, Will the Great Change again to us restore? He, who passed through the gate of death, has answered, All these our guests, and calmed our doubts and fear. He, when arisen, had forgotten nothing, - And to His loved ones, He Himself drew near. Near to the two upon Emmans journey, And near to Mary, whom He. called by name. To the bewildered group in bolted chamber— Proving His Personality—He came. So by His own revealment, blest fulfilment Of all our eager longings. He has shown, That when we reach the land beyond the river, We too shall know, even as we are known. —P. D. Van der Swan. A writer in a New Zealand magazine said: "My first experience of the sudden death of one. I loved dearly, caused my faith to falter. The following verses, sent me then, were a great help, being both a solace and a challenge: God hath not promised Skies ever blue Flower-strewn pathways, All our lives through. God hath not promised Sun without rain, Joy without sorrow. Peace without pain. But God hath promised Strength for the day,, Rest for the labour, Sight for the way. Grace for the trials Help from above Unfailing sympathy, Undying love.